Why It’s Time to Dust Off the Direct Mail Marketing Playbook

In 2020, marketers prioritized direct-to-consumer (DTC) models to stay profitable. Introducing an evolving direct response strategy for DTC success. Consumers loved it, causing an uproar among more and more ambitious entrepreneurs DTC marks introduced themselves to the market.

DTC e-commerce sales in the US will grow double-digits by 2024, and the number of US DTC buyers will grow to 111 million by 2023, according to a study report by Insider Intelligence. But growing new customers doesn’t always mean DTC’s profitability.

The influx of DTC marks since the pandemic has led to a crowded, competitive market. Increasing competition, consumers Privacy Policy and operating costs have increased dramatically marketing and customer acquisition costs, which quickly overtook the 2020 DTC Marketing Playbook.

In turn, DTC retailers are re-examining many of the tactics adopted by other DTC startups to spur growth. Get started with direct mail marketing.

According to a 2022 study by the Association of National Advertisers, throwback marketing strategy has a higher return on investment than other marketing efforts such as email or social media advertising report.

In this new era of DTC competition, incorporating direct mail into other direct response strategies can help consumer brands improve the customer experience and encourage recurring interactions, enabling them to unlock scalable growth profitability.

Why direct mail?

Despite the proliferation of digital marketing, consumer preference for direct mail has not diminished in recent years. In fact, some studies show that the largest consumer groups, such as Millennials and Gen Z, are more likely to respond to direct mail because they value personalized and relevant communication, or find receiving physical mail in the digital age novel. Further industry research has revealed Emails to get a higher response rate and ROI than many of the most popular digital channels.

Offline consumer data enables brands to create highly personalized and tailored direct mail campaigns, while print technology and other industry advances enable rapidly triggered programs based on customer activity. Like digital tactics, email can deliver relevant and customized messages to the right people to make a lasting impression and maximize the performance of direct response campaigns.

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How direct mail can create growth

Limited resources and intense competition in the DTC market make it difficult to attract and retain customers. Leveraging your marketing efforts to stimulate incremental growth is essential to the long-term success of a DTC brand.

Direct mail can be an effective marketing channel DTC companies strive for profitable growth. For brands with email experience, targeting new demographics to diversify mailing lists is a potential growth strategy. Continually testing new audience models and using multiple data sources when building direct mailing lists will help you diversify your mailing lists. Revealing Campaign Analysis and tracking responses helps ensure brands are reaching the intended audience and getting the results they want.

Another approach is to combine direct mail with digital channels, such as email marketingsocial media and programmatic advertising tactics to create a integrated campaign. This can increase brand awareness and conversions across multiple channels.

USPS Research shows that the combination of digital and direct marketing tactics can result in a 68 percent increase in website visits, a 63 percent increase in response rates, and a 60 percent improvement in return on investment. In addition, using more than one channel can reduce the cost per acquisition and improve marketing campaign performance, making it more cost-effective to acquire new customers.

Gradual growth is also possible for new mailers. It just takes time and collaboration. Young brands should start with a small direct mail test campaign, such as shared email program and analyze the results. This can include sending direct mail to a target audience of customers or prospects, measuring response rates, and adjusting messaging and creative design based on performance. If the campaign proves successful, you can increase mailing volume with a single campaign and further optimize your mailing list for additional sales.

Direct mail campaigns improve the customer experience

The competitive DTC market is highly competitive and consumers will be happy to shop around to find a brand that offers the positive experience they are looking for. Effective messaging in your marketing tactics builds trust. loyalty and advocacy with your audience.

An effective direct response strategy for DTC profitability is to leverage the deliverability of the email channel personalized, engaging and targeted messages, valued by seasoned direct marketers for its historical success. The high quality customer data can be used to reach your best prospects with tailored messages and design elements. Audience segmentation to target messages to specific groups based on interests, purchase history, or other factors provides a more relevant and engaging experience. You can also examine past performance results and pay close attention to them sending frequency to ensure timely communication.

Leveraging offline data is a powerful way to improve online marketing programs and target the right audiences on their preferred channels. This approach allows you to expand into new channels while leveraging reliable targeting data, rather than solely relying on social media algorithms. This allows you to deliver a customized experience to your most valuable audience, leading to better engagement and improved ROI. Additionally, implementing this strategy protects your budget and helps you maximize your spending, which ultimately increases profitability.

First-time shippers can create positive customer experiences by instilling a sense of excitement and anticipation. Direct mail is a tangible medium that instantly creates a memorable and engaging brand experience. Physical mail offers an opportunity to launch a new product or service in a creative and visually appealing way, thereby generating interest and excitement.

Additionally, brands can encourage repeat purchases and customer loyalty Offer exclusively Promotions or rewards for their customers. This differentiates DTC companies from the competition and builds long-term customer relationships.

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Encourage recurring interactions with direct mail

according to a current DTC metrics reportRegular customers account for 60 percent of sales in the DTC area. Because it’s often more cost-effective to retain loyal customers than it is to acquire new ones, a direct response strategy for DTC profitability must prioritize initiatives that drive recurring engagement and customer retention.

Triggered mailings are a useful tool to personalize messages to consumers based on their behavior or actions. They can help recover abandoned carts and send reminders or special offers to improve conversion rates and customer experience. Automated offline Retargeting Campaigns can also be run alongside digital campaigns using automation to re-engage interested customers and leads who haven’t made a purchase yet. This increases the chances of conversion and ensures a seamless multi-channel experience.

Showing your customers you care with exclusive discounts, early access to new products, or special perks for referred friends and family is the kind of special treatment this valued segment of customers seeks. This is also a great group for experimenting with different mailer sizes formatsto find out what creative elements work best for prospecting tactics. You can also use your retention mailings to collect customer feedback. Brand loyal customers not only want to feel like part of your product development team, but also allow you to use their reviews to improve products, services and the overall customer experience.

New to the channel? No problem. Recurring engagement can be encouraged by creating a strong and compelling call to action. Encourage customers to sign up for a subscription service, join a loyalty program, or attend an exclusive event. Brands should also prioritize the likes of relevant age groups. Since millennials prefer experiences to discounts, consider including direct mail offers or fun rewards. In contrast, Gen Z prefers interactive content to keep them interested.

As with any marketing channel, there are some risks with direct mail campaigns such as: B. the initial investment and ongoing testing costs. Quiet, DTC brands can leverage direct mail marketing and direct response strategies to strengthen customer relationships, build long-term customer loyalty, and protect profitability.